Nothing to fear on NBN prices, says Quigley

The head of the Gillard government’s $35.9 billion national broadband network has hit out at critics who have warned of big prices rises once the project is rolled out, insisting on Thursday morning he had no such plans.

“Anybody who says we want to increase prices by 5 per cent is misleading both this committee and the public," Mr Quigley told the committee shortly after proceedings began at about 9.00am.

The Coalition has seized on the NBN Co’s formal submission to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission on its network plans, which seeks to give the government company the flexibility to incrase prices.

Liberal backbencher and former Optus executive
Paul Fletcher
has warned that the NBN Co’s position would allow it to increase prices for high end broadband services by 5 per cent above inflation over the coming decades.

Mr Fletcher calculated that if inflation was 2 per cent then the NBN Co could increases monthly broadband wholesale prices from about $100 to $711 over 30 years.

But Mr Quigley pointed to the rates being charged by internet service providers at the moment to defend his position on pricing, rejecting warnings of big price rises to come.